A toddler, a small child ranging in age from 6 months to 30 months, needs lots of close supervision and activities to keep amused. If the adult does not find ways to amuse toddlers, they might find their own amusement; and that's not always a good thing. Observe activities that your toddler is drawn to and try to expand on those. Below are a few examples of a toddler's interests and ideas to expand these into fun activities.

Steps

Method1

Toddlers and Water

1

Procure a plastic tub large enough for your toddler to sit in.

2

Fill it with a small amount of warm water, and offer plastic cups and spoons. Show the child how to fill the cup using the spoon. Older toddles might enjoy using a funnel to fill the cups or bottles.

3

Make a bubble bath or bring out bubble wands while the child is in the tub. Straws that they can blow into and produce bubbles are always fun, but only allow the older toddlers to do that.

4

Add a few drops of food coloring into a fairly large container of water to fascinate your toddler. Make up several cups or bottles of different colored water and let the toddler experiment while in the tub.

5

Use plastic condiment bottles to fill with water and squirt at others.

6

Set up the water hose next to the tub, and allow your toddler to play with the trickle of water coming from the end.

Method2

Toddlers and Tools

1

Give your toddlers their own tools just like the grownups have. You can buy miniature tool sets at any of the big toy stores, or they are readily available online.

2

Let your toddler work alongside you as you make home repairs.

3

Cut up a wooden dowel into short pieces and drill holes the diameter of the dowel in a small piece of wood. Add legs to the wood to form a small table and let the toddler hammer the dowels through the holes.

4

Save oatmeal boxes, coffee cans and other assorted items, and let your toddler bang them with the hammer.

5

Gather some thick chunks of rigid Styrofoam, like what is used in packing, and let your toddler saw it up.

Method3

Toddlers and Music

Gather paper towel and bathroom tissue rolls for horns. Your toddler can make his own toots. Look for such instruments as harmonicas, kazoos and whistles.

3

Make a set of drums using different size tin or aluminum cans for the drums themselves and dowel rods for the sticks.

Method4

Toddlers and Chores

1

Allow your toddler to help you work around the house. He or she can dust furniture and cabinets, hold the dustpan for you, help sort clothes by color, help put clothes in the dryer, measure out simple ingredients for cooking, help pick up a room and put toys away.